Lung cancer can also cause this kind of pain.
Verywell / Brianna Gilmartin
When Is Chest Pain With Breathing Serious?
Chest pain when breathing isn’t always an emergency, but it can point to a serious problem.
Verywell / Brianna Gilmartin
That’s because the heart lies near and works closely with the lungs.
Getting fast treatment for a heart attack helps limit the damage.
Any time you have symptoms that could point to a heart attack, you should get emergency medical help.
Common symptoms include:
You may also have:
These symptoms always warrant a call to 911.
Some conditions make it hard to breathe while you’re lying down.
Lung-Related Causes
The lungs don’t have pain receptors.
Still, medical conditions involving the lungs can cause pain in several ways.
Often, the pain comes frompleurisy, which is irritation of the pleura.
Pain related to the pleura is called pleuritic chest pain.
It can be because of many different conditions, including some that are cancerous or infectious.
Asthma can bewell managedwith medications like inhalers and by learning to avoid triggers.
Chest Pain During Exercise
Chest pain and trouble breathing during exercise are not considered normal.
Cancer
Cancerous causes of pleurisy includelung cancer,mesothelioma, and malignant pleural effusions.
Panic attacks are often mistaken for heart attacks due to chest pain symptoms.
Diagnosis
Depending on your other symptoms, your healthcare provider may order several tests.
These include imaging, bloodwork, and more.
They can help to identifyautoimmune diseasesand other inflammatory conditions.
These include:
Your healthcare provider may also prescribe medications to treat the underlying cause.
If the cause is musculoskeletal, they may suggest other therapeutic options such as physical therapy.
Chest pain when breathing can be diagnosed using various imaging studies, bloodwork, and other tests.
Err on the side of caution and seek medical care if you experience chest pain.
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